The Bucket List

I have to admit, I stole this idea from Tried, Tested, and True Mommy.  She keeps her list on her blog and I decided it was a great idea.  Imitation is the greatest form of flattery I hope.  I think that having a bucket list is a great thing.  And putting it in a public forum such as the blog takes this list and turns it from dreams to goals.  So here is the start of my list which will soon get its own page/tab here on the blog where I can add to it and cross things off and hopefully get encouragement and words of wisdom from you, my loyal readers.

1. Visit Greece
2. Visit Italy
3. Write a book
4. Publish said book
5. Lose 100 pounds
6. Go back to Ireland so I can show my husband the place I love so much
7. Visit at least 30 states by the time my kids graduate from high school
8. Read every book by Jane Austen
9. Own a first edition of one of Jane Austen’s books (you know, after I win the lottery)
10. See the Northern lights
11. Ride in a hot air balloon
12. Visit Washington DC when the cherry trees are blossoming
13. Write my personal history
14. Record my Grandma’s story while she is still here with us
15. Own a book published in the 1700’s (or earlier)
16. Visit Russia to see where some of my ancestors came from
17. Learn French (more than the one semester I took in college)
18. Read all the books by the Bronte sisters
19. Find a way to forgive and finally get past the anger I still feel towards my biological father for not being there for my sister and I
20. Write a cookbook
21. Publish said cookbook
22. Kiss my husband at midnight on New Year’s eve in Times square
23. Publish an historical article in a scholarly journal (put my Master’s degree to use finally)
24. Visit Andorra (I want to see what it’s like in a micro-nation)
25. Read all books by Willa Cather
26. Write a children’s book for my kids
27. Make it to the top of Pikes Peak by way of the Barr Trail (hiking!)
28. Break through the brick wall that is David C. Jones and Elizabeth Cottrell Brown (genealogy related)
29. Learn to say “Please” and “Thank You” in 10 different languages (like actually learn not just see how to do it)

Family History Week Wrap Up: Book Reviews

So, the time has come to wrap up family history week and as I look back over the posts, I have to say that I pretty happy with how everything turned out.  I hope you all enjoyed this week and were able to pick up some good tips and/or fun things to do.

To end the week, I have three books I thought may be helpful as you write your story or search for your roots.  The three I have picked out have been really helpful to me and provide some great tips and insight into writing and researching.

The first book is Who Do You Think You Are?: The Essential Guide to Tracing Your Family History by Megan Smolenyak.  I picked up this book about a year and half ago when I first started getting into genealogy.  It has the same title as the NBC show, and while they are connected, the book doesn’t really mention celebrities.  What it does do is give some really great tips for researching your ancestors.  This book is one of the best I have seen for basics.  If you are an experienced researcher and have been looking into your family tree for quite a while, this may not be the book for you.  But, if you are just getting started, you will find some great pointers to help you get going in the right direction.

Craft Time: Family/Personal History Journal Jars

Monday I ranted on why it was important to tell your own story and today, I wanted to give you a way to help accomplish this.  So, I give to you, Journal Jars.  These are fun little jars filled with prompts to help you tell your story.

What you need:

• A medium to large size jar with a lid
• Scrapbook paper (the thinner stuff works best for this.  Also you need at least some of it to be white on one side.)
• Ribbon and other decorative items.
• Glue
• Scissors

Why Personal History? Who Cares?

So it was pretty early on in my college days that I realized a degree in history was fairly useless.  But, did I let that deter me from continuing on?  Of course not.  Not only did I stay on track and graduate with my history major, but I even took the next step and went to Grad school to get a Master’s degree in it.  I just kept thinking, there has to be something out there.  I really wanted (and still sort of do) to work in a museum.  I did an internship in the archives of one as an undergrad and let me just say, I am quite well suited to dark dungeonous archives.  Well, suffice it to say, there aren’t a lot of job opportunities in the museum field at the moment and I don’t live in Washington D.C..  So, with this in my head, I started thinking of other options for myself who at this point now had an infant at home.

And this is when Your Legacy Creations was born.

Upcoming Family History Week

So looking back over my posts, I realized that I haven’t really shown too much of my historical side, so I thought I would dedicate next week to family history.  I have been living in the past most of my adult life, but my passion for family and personal history is a recent development.  Besides loving it, I also love to share it and so I am really looking forward to what I have set up for next week.  Here is a little preview.

• Why Personal History?
• Craft: Family History Journal Jars
• Recipe:  Banana Bread (a family recipe to share with you)
• Why Genealogy is important and how to get started
• Craft:  Family Tree project for the kids
• Book Review: “Who Do You Think You Are? :  The Essential Guide to Tracing Your Family History”

I tried to keep it diverse and not to “talky”.  I hope this piques your interest and you check back here next week to participate in the discussion.